It was charmless and very lacking in fun and humour. For me it was one of the most dissappointing routines tonight

The flip at the end put me in mind of Artem hefting a sack of potatoes over his shoulder, and the landing really confirmed it - "Thunk". Then again, it was a risky move given her previous back problems and I was very surprised to see it in the routine at all.

It was the dance I was most looking forward to as well, I expected so much from these two, but yeah, there was no frivolity to it at all.

i thought the choreography was superb and artem was astonishing (i'm not usually his biggest fan...)

natalie danced well, but unfortunately, we have come to expect too much from her, and now that she has joined the ranks of the mortals, training lerss, not over stretching herself, she looks less impressive by comparison to some of her other performances. but it was still an excellent performance and deserved its place on the leader board.

It was bad for Natalie but it wasn't truly bad. The music was atrocious and too slow for a good Charleston and, I suspect, the combination of Natalie's back and Artem's neck resulted in choreography that was cautious and polite rather than a full-on, crowd-pleasing Charleston. I was disappointed and I am a Natalie fan.

The music killed it for me. The Paso preceding it lifted the roof off and proves that generally, traditional works the best with dances that have a definite character or era attached to them. I'm not a Susanna fan but I bloody loved that. Traditional WORKS.

I generally like Artem's choreography but have to say in this piece it let her down. She did what she was asked to do.

If you don't like Wil.I am's version of the song nothing will make you like someone dancing to it. I personally like the Betty Boop version of this song and that Cotton Club flavor they added to the dance.

Had it been choreographed differently it would have popped. Artem may have held back due to both of their health issues and the dance suffered for it.

i think it didn't help that he had that short section with the pro girls, as they were really on it, and it was another reminder, along with the slightly hesitant execution, that natalie is not actually a pro

I love Natalie but i did find the whole dance lacking the spark that makes the best Charlestons stand out. Technically fine but without a true standout moment. I'm sure she'll get that 40 soon enough though.

I loved it. I thought it was a cool, stylised version of a Charleston and the speed was dictated by the music. I agree they were both protecting injuries and didn't go full out and the large floor can reduce the impact of the routine. Also agree with OP that Natalie would have been hammered by many if she had gone full out in her performance - dammed if she did and dammed if she didn't.

Terrible choice of music imo...and it killed one of my favourite dances, I don't usually enjoy the paso yet the music made it the dance of the night for me.....

Think this dance was Artem being Artem and thinking only about Artem....and it showed.
He has a great dancer this year but he's pushing it with difficult routines and seems to forget she's not a pro.
I wouldn't be surprised if the jive (last week) was really taxing and contributed to her exhaustion.
Was that flip really necessary ?? Surprised that she wasn't exhausted this week if she's been practising THAT all week.

I couldn't disagree more- I thought it had style, kookiness, a good mix of classic steps and modern twists, and the music from The Great Gatsby was a great fusion of trad Charleston and a modern interpretation. Loved it.

She's great but the music was mental

Natalie is my favourite contestant and will continue to be so, but tonight's Charleston simply didn't come up to scratch for me - nothing to do with Nat's ability; parts of it were fantastic but the music and in particular the back flip left it lacking.

I agree thought it was nothing special

How could anyone dance to that music

Didn't like the music, I think it was danced competently but it lacked 'personality' - maybe there was a story they were trying to tell but it didn't really come across.

Nothing against Natalie here, I like her and Artem, just didn't do much for me at all. I suppose I expect people's Charlestons to be better than their average standard, this just didn't seem to have that little extra edge they often have.

I couldn't disagree more either - it was laboured, lacking in fun, charm and humour, all elements one expects in a Charleston, and as for that clumpy lift..it was truly awful.:yawn:

I've just rewatched it - a couple of times and I found I actually enjoyed it more than during the show. I think it was unfortunate it came after Susannas 'showstopping' dance coupled with the music being a bit of a shock.
Watching it again I found it quite sophisticated and fun without being the usual goofy OTT slapstick. Again, after watching it a couple of times I found the music was fine - maybe not the best choice but not as bad as I first thought. I think they should have either started the show or been more in the middle for it to have made more of an impact. Still not sure of the 10's but the position on the leader board is right so it all evens out in the end.

A bit more Boop rather than Baker.

This is what happens when you try to tame Natalie's hair.

It must fuel her dancing. It was all over the place in her Rumba and I *adored* that dance.

yeah, let the hair out

It can be danced to when you get the choreography right.

Derek and Amber from DWTS dancing to Bang Bang:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NbELDGw8MM

I thought her actual dancing was excellent (and Artem is a much better Charleston dancer than the other pros) but the routine was flat, it started well but didn't really take off. I wonder if they had take some of the tricks out since Artem injured himself.